The University of Southampton has confirmed its commitment to help and support communities in Southampton and the surrounding region by signing a national agreement –pledging to form closer links with local people and organisations.
The University will be joining over 60 other UK universities who are committed to producing similar agreements as part of a national initiative in response to a key recommendation by the Civic University Commission- an independent inquiry set up by the University Partnerships Programme Foundation to explore how universities can successfully serve their local areas.
Through developing its own Civic University Agreement, the University will encourage collaborative action to combat and overcome the challenges facing local communities.
Professor Mark E. Smith, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Southampton, said: “The University supports a huge range of activities in Southampton and Winchester, from our substantial contribution to the arts and culture in the region, to outreach by our academics and support for local groups. We are pleased to be exploring how we can work jointly with Solent University and University of Winchester, to even better understand our local area and what it wants from its universities to strengthen our civic role still further. Southampton’s research, education, alumni and outlook are global, but we are rooted in our community.”
The University’s civic and community-engagement work will focus on the following key areas:
- The Arts at the University of Southampton, supporting the creative and cultural life of communities through the Southampton 2025 UK City of Culture Bid, Southampton Cultural Education Partnership and Connecting Culture research programme for children and young people.
- Responding to the challenges of Covid-19, in both public health and economic recovery: from creating innovative support technology, to local trialling of Covid-19 saliva testing with communities/ schools and supporting the development of potential vaccines, as part of the global effort.
- Developing new ways of responding to environment and sustainability issues aligned to the Southampton Green City Charter, in order to meet zero net carbon initiatives.
Richard Brabner, Director of the University Partnership Programme Foundation, said: ‘Whether it’s the economy, environment, culture, health or of course education, universities have an indispensable role in helping their local communities thrive. This role to the benefit of local communities, but also to universities, as their own success is bound up with the success of the places that gave birth to them.
We are therefore delighted the University of Southampton has pledged to prioritise its civic mission – putting the needs of its local community at the heart of its future. At a time when the region will be recovering from the pandemic, Southampton’s civic impact has never been more important.’
